Austrian Airlines grounds 100 flights as union demands wage hike

Austrian Airlines canceled more than 100 flights on Tuesday as workers strike to demand higher pay, the latest in a string of protests sweeping the European aviation industry in the run-up to the busy Easter travel season.

The company has offered a wage hike of as much as 12.3%, according to the Chamber of Commerce in Austria. Worker representatives said the proposal only applies to some employees, while most would have to contend with an increase of 10%.

The union meeting started at 9 a.m. in Vienna on Tuesday. A similar gathering earlier this month turned into a warning strike lasting into the early afternoon hours.

Deutsche Lufthansa AG, the owner of Austrian Airlines, grounded flights in Germany on Monday amid a similar dispute over salaries. In France, protesters have clashed with police, opposing plans to raise the minimum retirement age. And in the UK, British Airways canceled flights over the Easter vacation because of protests at Heathrow airport ground staff.

Austria’s state-owned railways operator raised wages by an average 8.9% in December following a day-long strike.